It’s California First for Sony’s Afeela 1
Sony’s automotive debut will be in the Golden State when the Afeela 1 goes on sale in 2026.
The EV sedan—a joint venture with Honda—was first shown in 2023 and has just been displayed in near-production-ready form at CES in Las Vegas, where it was announced that California will be the initial market for the car. In fact Californians can pre-order now with a $200 deposit.
Those customers will need to find a further $102,700 for the Signature trim edition, which will be first to the road, featuring 21-inch alloy wheels, a choice of just three exterior colors and two interior trims, plus a camera-driven rear-view system and two rear entertainment screens to complement the panoramic screen for front seat passengers.
The all-wheel-drive Afeela 1 is powered by two 244 hp electric motors—one for each axle—and has a battery capacity of 92 kWh for a range of up to 300 miles on a charge. The batteries can be replenished at up to 150 kW so pit stops should be pretty short.
The chassis relies on double-wishbone suspension for the front axle and a multi-link arrangement at the rear, and with Honda’s expertise the driving experience should be decent. However, Sony is banking on humans not actually doing much of the driving (or at least having the choice not to) thanks to the Afeela Intelligent Drive system which will provide level two-plus autonomous driving. The system is fed by more than 40 sensors including cameras, lidar, radar and ultrasonic technology.
When the driver does take control it will be through a yoke-style steering wheel with steer-by-wire. Sony-Honda promises “a sense of unity with the driver” with “nimble and stable handling”. A three-dimensional motion management system adjusts motors, brakes and suspension for optimal ride comfort.
There’s also built-in noise-cancellation tech, an audio system that’s optimized for each passenger and Afeela Personal Agent voice control. A wide variety of apps from Spotify to Zoom will be available. The interior is said to be made from 70 percent recycled materials with additional recycled steel in the body and chassis.
Following the launch of the top-spec Signature will be an Origin model in 2027 priced at $89,900, which will only be available in black with a single interior trim level. The Afeela 1 will then gradually be rolled out across the U.S.
A hundred grand sedan in a crossover marketplace probably without government subsidies? Seriously?
Yet another soulless, Blah-mobile…About as exciting as a grey concrete wall with wheels.
Styling?….. Non-Existent
Innovative…yes, for 2005
Excitement factor…about on a level with moldy bread.
Electric car is the tool of the devil! My car gets 40 rods to the hogshead and that’s the way i likes it!
🤣😂
Looks slightly like a Lucid. $102k for a Sony-Honda car. I’d pass.
Will Sony provide the sound system? Odd duck of a car. I’m sure it’s full of tech and whiz-bang gadgetry however people ultimately buy what they see. maybe they plan on making their profit from data collected.
I would much rather have a brand new 1979 ford courier pick up but I wouldn’t pay 100 grand for that either.
The name reminded me of my high school nurse- Ophelia Dickey, RN
I’ve got a Sony television. Picture quality is good, but I just can’t picture a Sony car.
Yall are missing the point. This is a car for people who DO NOT LIKE TO DRIVE!!!! Second level autonomy is close, but still not there for the “I HATE TO DRIVE, LET THE CAR GET ME THERE” crowd. Spend some time commuting in heavy traffic in most cities and you also will learn to hate driving. A big 4×4 off road truck, or exotic sports car stuck in 20 MPH bumper to bumper traffic is laughable and NO fun to drive. It will only get worse! So I envy you folks that drive on open country roads, like in the commercials, but you are in the minority of buyers. I have a hobby car, but I have to get up at 5:00 AM on Sunday to drive to the local cars and coffee to avoid traffic while most of humanity sleeps. Open road – aaaahhhh. Then when I drive home it’s heavy traffic and idiots on cell phones.